May 20, 2021
spring knitting and reading
posted by soe 1:35 am
I got through the heel of my sock during a conference call yesterday and am on to the foot. At least I think I am. I decreased the heel more than usual, so I need to try on the sock once the foot’s a little longer to make sure it doesn’t muck up the fit.
And I started two new books. On paper, it’s Sonya Lalli’s Serena Singh Flips the Script. Set in my neighborhood, it’s the story of a young woman figuring out how to find your people as an adult. I heard about it on my birthday weekend as part of an author event hosted by one of my local bookshops. So far, so good, which makes me happy, because one of her other titles has been in my audiobooks queue for a while.
And in my ears, it’s The Bookshop of Second Chances by Jackie Fraser about a middle-aged English woman who, after losing her marriage and her job in near proximity, discovers she’s inherited a great uncle’s Scottish house and library of first editions. It just so happens there’s a kind-hearted but curmudgeonly antiquarian bookseller in town…
Want to see what others are reading and crafting? Head over to As Kat Knits for the weekly roundup!
May 19, 2021
jonesing for new clothes
posted by soe 1:31 am
Apparently the desire to leave my house and see people again makes me want to buy new clothes. Friday I bought a couple casual tshirts online during a sale. Saturday I took myself to TJ Maxx for the first time since the pandemic and came away with several tops I could wear for work calls and a sundress I need to try on for Rudi. Yesterday, I ordered shorts, none of which may fit. But apparently I’m tired of the clothes I’ve been Zooming in for the past 15 months. Now, if I could just find some underwire-free bras for a reasonable price and get a Target BOGO sale on underwear, I’d be a very happy camper!
May 18, 2021
top ten book titles that are complete sentences
posted by soe 12:16 am
Somehow I thought when I saw this week’s Top Ten Tuesday topic from That Artsy Girl, Book Titles That Are Complete Sentences, I thought it was going to be hard to compile. But I like title challenges more than I like cover challenges and figured I could scroll through several pages of my Goodreads lists and find enough to qualify. Turns out, not so much! It only took me the first two pages of my most recent reads to compile 10, all read within the past 19 months:
- Sal and Gabi Break the Universe by Carlos Hernandez
- Take a Hint, Dani Brown! by Talia Hibbert
- Nothing Is Wrong and Here Is Why by Alexandra Petri
- Get a Life, Chloe Brown! by Talia Hibbert
- Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky by Kwame Mbalia
- I’m Not Dying with You Tonight by Kimberly Jones and Gilly Segal
- Size 12 Is Not Fat by Meg Cabot
- Tuesday Mooney Talks to Ghosts by Kate Racculia
- Look Both Ways by Jason Reynolds
- Evvie Drake Starts Over by Linda Holmes
While most of these books have been written in the past couple years, the Meg Cabot dates to 2005, perhaps marking it as a forerunner in the category.
May 17, 2021
bout of books 31 wrapup
posted by soe 1:10 am

Bout of Books 31 wrapped up tonight, and while I didn’t complete all my goals, I’m counting it as a success. I finished my audiobook, Abby Collette’s A Deadly Inside Scoop. It was sort of a middle-of-the-road cozy about a young Black woman who stumbles over a dead body the same day she relaunches her family ice cream parlor. Her father ends up being the main suspect, so she and her BBC Mystery-loving best friend find themselves trying to clear him. I don’t know I’ll keep reading the series, but I’m glad I read the first one, particularly because BIPOC sleuths are hard to come by. I started George Saunders’ A Swim in a Pond in the Rain because it’s overdue and I want to see if I should request it again, buy it, or just return it and give it no further psychic energy. (I need to read a few more pages before I can decide.) So that was where my print mojo went, rather than to the graphic novel, which is what I’d planned to finish.
I did make it to all three Bout of Books Twitter chats (the two official and the bonus one), although only one of them did I arrive on time. Oh well.
May 16, 2021
multitasking saturday
posted by soe 1:21 am
Today was a day for doing a couple things at once. I listened to an audiobook while having breakfast. I did laundry while taking part in the Bout of Books Twitter chat. I snacked in the sun while reading. I listened to a band while knitting. I finished my audiobook while sleeping on the couch.
Okay, I confess: that last one ended up being too much. While technically both happened at the same time, I had to rewind the audiobook to catch the end of the book.
But still!
May 15, 2021
weekend planning
posted by soe 1:20 am
Things I’m hoping to get to this weekend:
- Do my taxes.
- Clean up some portion of my apartment.
- Spend lots of time outside.
- String the peas up higher. (They’re growing like weeds.) Also, remove more weeds.
- Go to the library.
- Stop by a craft festival.
- Wash laundry.
- Pick up my knitting.
- Finish my audiobook.
- Shop for some graduation gifts for my interns.
How about you? What’s on your to-do list?